A great tool in my clinic for deciphering what is occurring in the shoulder region is a Musculoskeletal Ultrasound. Ultrasound works by using sound waves to produce images of muscles, tendons and ligaments. Ultrasound can show sprains, strains and tears in the soft tissue.

Some of you may know that I have two young rippers on the mountain. It brings me such joy seeing them improve over the years. Not only two years ago, my youngest son was tethered to a harness. Now he is seeking his own tracks along the little tree runs. As their skiing ability trajectory is only up, I strive to keep up and often fail at doing so. Whether it is my own skill or the aches and pains in my own body that prevent me from keeping up with my kids, I often have to succumb and let them win our races.

This presents me with the question of how to slow down the aging process to have some hope in skiing alongside the younger generation.

Regenerate with PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma). Some injuries only heal so far on their own. This is where PRP comes into play. Injecting your own blood right at the site of injury creates a whole cascade of healing. Platelets are rich in growth factors and localizing the platelets to damaged tissue accelerates their repair. PRP should be considered in injuries that have not healed on their own or in degenerative osteoarthritis.

One of the tenants of Naturopathic medicine is to appreciate the innate healing power of nature. My hope is always that there is a healthy cycle of Play. Injury. Repair. Repeat. As will it be with our forests, wild fires will die down and snow will begin to fall. Not too long now will we be breathing fresh crisp winter air along the runs of Apex.

What a phenomenal January! Bumps. Powder turns. Endless runs. Grins from ear to ear. But if you ask your knees, they may have a different story. Your knees take the brunt of it and often are what gets you to call it a day.

How can you preserve the cushioning in your knee joints while still tackling those mogul runs? Let’s look at what your knees are meant to be made of and what is lost when we talk of being bone on bone…Collagen.

How’d that preseason training go for you? Are you feeling it after a good day on the hill? Albeit this is early season and your ski legs might not be here yet, you will benefit from some of these tips to keep agile throughout the season & even own the last run of the day.

An interest of mine of late is surrounding Concussions — prevention, occurrence & treatment. They happen. On the hill. From a fall. From a motor vehicle accident. Let’s talk about how it happens, misconceptions, symptoms to watch for and what to do if one occurs.

If you are like me, you think of autumn as the gateway into winter. You spend much of your time getting geared up for ski season & begin the ritualistic prayers to the snow gods. With all this excitement of the first snowfall brings on preseason training.

Some things to keep in mind while you get your body fit for the hill are:

An all too common cause of knee pain, especially in runners, is due to patellofemoral pain syndrome. The high frequency of this syndrome in runner's is signified by it's coined name "Runner's Knee". This is caused by patella tracking problems during flexion and extension. The patella is also known as the knee cap. Over time damage can occur to the undersurface of the patella and lead to chondromalacia patella if left untreated.

Headaches can be a nuisance to down right debilitating. Those of you who suffer from headaches I can imagine can attest to the wish to be rid of these burdens.

Patients seek help from naturopathic doctors for a variety of reasons — they want off their current medication, their medication is no longer that magic bullet or they haven’t found a medication that works for their particular headache.

Whatever the source of your headaches, my aim is to get to the bottom of it and bring you relief.

Headaches can come from many sources. Aside from pain medication, permanent relief comes from figuring out the pain's source. When seeking out resolution, one source to keep in mind is Temporal Mandibular Joint (TMJ) Disorder.

The most common symptom in TMJ Disorder is a headache. These headaches present in the temple area and can include piercing pain behind the eyes.

Some of us can predict the weather without looking at the barometer. It’s when the joints start talking – cracking, achy, and stiff – as the weather turns to the damp wet coast that we all know well.

These joint symptoms are the signature of arthritis. This inflammatory condition of the joints can bring with it cartilage deterioration. But more importantly to the person affected – pain and subsequent reduction in activity.